Kyle Lowry To Opt Out Of Contract, Says He Wants A Ring & ‘Nothing Else’

It looks like the Toronto Raptors will be taking a huge step back next year.

Star point guard Kyle Lowry made it clear on Monday that he plans to opt out of the final year of his contract with the Toronto Raptors.

“Honestly, I haven’t thought about the criteria. I haven’t thought too far ahead of any of that,” he said in his exit interview. “I will be opting out, and that’s as far as I’ve gotten.”

Lowry could get a 5-year deal worth more than $200 million during the offseason if the Raptors re-sign him to a five-year maximum contract using his Bird rights. If he decided to exercise his free agency and sign with another squad, a max deal could net him just over $150 million.

Lowry also made it clear that he doesn’t know what his next step despite being on the verge of opting out.

“I haven’t thought about it. I wouldn’t BS you guys,” Lowry told the reporters toward whom he’s often been pugnacious and guarded. “Well, I would, but I’m not this time.”

There is one thing he is hoping to accomplish.

“A ring,” he said, without hesitation. “Nothing else. I just want a ring.”

“I think I can do it anywhere I play,” Lowry said when asked if he can achieve that lofty goal in Toronto, where he’s grown into the three-time All-Star he is today. “That’s just how confident I am. I’ve just gotta be better. I put a lot of pride and joy into how hard I work, so I know I’ve just gotta work harder. I’ve gotta do something different. I’ve gotta get better. I want to beat the best. And whatever it takes to beat the best, that’s what I’ve gotta do.”

“I haven’t thought about any of that,” he said. “Honestly, what I’ve thought about is, yes, I’ll opt out, and how I need to get better as a basketball player. That’s all I’ve thought about. And that I want a ring. That’s all that drives me.”

Shortly after being swept by the Cleveland Cavaliers on Sunday – a source stated Lowry would look to join a Western Conference team in hopes of bringing home a championship.

Late-season rumbles that Kyle Lowry will give legit thought to a free-agent switch to the West are sure to rise in volume after this series